Funds Provided for Court Improvements

Minister of Justice, Hon. Delroy Chuck, says funds have been provided for improvement works at courts across the island in the next fiscal year, which begins April 1.

He made the disclosure during the sitting of the Standing Finance Committee of the House of Representatives on March 1.

Mr. Chuck informed that many of the courts have been supplied with additional equipment, including air conditioning systems.
“The Clarendon Court has now undergone quite a bit of renovation. After the burnout of the Brown’s Town Court, we were able to put in a fairly new courthouse at Addison Park, but we are hoping that we won’t be there for much longer than two years, because we intend to rehabilitate the Brown’s Town Court,” Mr. Chuck said.

“In addition, the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) has now moved into very new, first world accommodation, which is about 99 per cent complete. What I can say is that the Ministry of Finance [and the Public Service] has given us enough funds to continue the improvement of all the courts across Jamaica,” he noted.

Mr. Chuck further informed that all the lawyers at the Legal Aid Council have been paid, and urged those who haven’t yet submitted claims to ensure that they do so.

“That’s one of the achievements of this Ministry. We make sure we pay our debts, so that no lawyer can complain that they have outstanding bills that have not been paid and we will continue to do so,” he said.

He noted that the Ministry is also up-to-date with regards to the payment of judgement debts.

“We have a little more money remaining, so for those persons who want to settle with the Attorney General’s chambers, we can pay up some more before the end of the fiscal year,” Mr. Chuck said.